Originally Posted by
VacancyBid
Not sure if that's meant to be a rhetorical question or not. I'll assume it's not.
Nobody ever really knows the "Five years on, what will have been a smart choice today?" They for sure had NO CLUE in October 2019 about October 2024.
Historically, most major hiring of civilians has been people with >1000hrs TPIC. A five year contract today doesn't seem like an awful option. Evaluate it against your other options, to include leaving aviation. It may well be your best choice. It seems likely that such a contract is going to be the only way to a regional job this year.
Take the 6 figure job, don't be an idiot. Or keep earning $20 an hour as a CFI "hoping" things get better. Newsflash, you ain't getting to a Legacy sooner than 5 years going that route either.